Casting Couch
by wolfmusic218
Summary: Reese uses an accident as an excuse to spend time with Carter...something he didn't realize he didn't need.


**Title:** Casting Couch

**Author:** wolfmusic218

**Summary:** Reese uses an accident as an excuse to spend time with Carter...something he didn't realize he didn't need.

**Author's notes:** It's always wonderful to get reviews, especially for older fics. When I received one for Having Your Cake, it got me thinking...what happened after that kiss? So, this is sort of a sequel to that story. You don't need to read it to understand this one, but I wouldn't mind if you did. ;)

Thanks (as always) go out to Chellero and PiscesChikk for their support and friendship, especially when I'm in my "I'm a pathetic writer-wanna be" mood. Also to SWWoman for the extra set of eyes, awesome suggestions, and conversation. And to callih...who was the instigator of this mess. :)

XXX POI XXX

"Gin."

Reese rolled his eyes. That was the 6th hand in a row she'd won. "You're cheating."

She laughed and picked up her beer, draining the bottle. She set it on the coaster on the coffee table in front of her. "We both know I'm not cheating. You just suck at Gin."

He mumbled something under his breath and shuffled the cards.

"What was that? You know, I didn't peg you for a sore loser." She couldn't stifle the grin on her face. She knew he was messing with her, but that only meant she had to mess with him right back. It was the way things were between them.

"I _said_, 'keep it up and I won't help you scratch under your cast again'". He winked at her and nodded towards the cast running halfway up her left leg.

"Now that would just be cruel and unusual punishment." She poked her bottom lip out at him in a pout.

"Then stop cheating."

She threw her head back and laughed. "I am _not_ cheating. I obviously don't _need_ to cheat." She giggled again when he narrowed his eyes at her and shuffled the cards some more.

The games had become a ritual for them over the last week or so. He'd shown up after she'd gotten home from the clinic, his arms heavy with Thai food and a deck of cards in his pocket. He'd been back every night since, always with something exotic for dinner. And always enough for all three of them. He'd never told her how he'd found out about her...accident...and this time it didn't matter to her where he'd gotten his information.

She didn't question why it didn't bother her...nor did she wonder about the fact that she actually looked forward to him showing up. They were friends, that was it. _Right?_

It didn't matter that whenever he said her name in that soft, raspy voice of his, butterflies took up residence in her stomach.

It _really_ didn't matter that when he looked at her with that smirk and those damn eyes, like he was doing now, she just wanted to drag him to her and wipe that smirk off of his face...with her lips.

Nope. Didn't matter at all.

She thought back a few weeks to the night she and Taylor had surprised him for his birthday and how he'd surprised her right back with a kiss as they were saying goodnight. And not just a kiss-on-the-cheek-between-friends kiss either. More like a curl-your-toes-and-break-out-in-gooseflesh kind of kiss. The man could kiss, there was no debating that. It was a damn good night that she relived every so often...wondering what it had meant.

She just didn't know if it had affected him as much as it had affected her. Hell, she didn't know if he even remembered it.

She felt him tugging lightly on her big toe.

"You OK?" He asked with a quick raise of his eyebrows.

She gave herself a good mental shake. "Yeah, of course, sorry. Where were we?"

He smirked at her and ran his finger across the bottom of her toes. "You were trying to come up with a new way to cheat."

She shook her head and grinned as he dealt the cards.

"Are you sure you don't mind me coming by?"

His question, spoken so quietly she almost missed it, startled her a little. "What?"

Reese shrugged and kept his eyes on his hand, moving the cards around. "I just want to make sure I'm not overstaying my welcome."

She set her cards face down on the table and shifted on the couch. "John, come on, do you honestly think if you were, I wouldn't say something?"

"I don't know." He still wouldn't look at her, and that just wasn't like him at all; his gaze was always very direct.

She didn't like this, not one bit. "Really?"

"Really."

She didn't know what to say to that. The thought that he had no idea how much she did want him here stunned her and made her just a little bit mad. She stood quickly, her cast making a thud on the floor as she did.

His head popped up with her movement, concern lacing his voice. "Where are you going?"

"I need a beer," she snapped.

He stood as she did and gripped her arm gently as she wobbled slightly. "Sit, I'll get it."

Yanking her arm out of his hand, she started to hobble to the kitchen. "I can get the damn beer."

Her outburst was uncalled for, she knew it...and she knew if she turned to look at him, his face would reflect his hurt and shock, if only for a second, before he covered it up.

She felt bad, she did...but _damn_ the man...damn him for not realizing how much she liked having him in her home. For not knowing how much it meant to her that he wanted to be there. With her. With them. He never stayed long...just long enough for dinner and their game, or a game with Taylor if he was home...and now she knew why. He didn't know. She'd never told him. She wasn't so much mad at _him_ as she was mad at herself. She knew him well enough to know that he never assumed anything, especially when it came to her.

They didn't talk like normal people did. The important things always seemed to be in code or glances or hidden meanings...and that was dangerous for two people who didn't know each other well enough to express their emotions through those things. Maybe it was time to step up and lay it out for him. Then the ball would be in his court.

She stood at the counter in her kitchen, her hands clenching the edge when she heard him come in.

"Maybe I should go."

She turned to see him standing in the doorway, leaning on the doorjamb. To anyone else, he would look nonchalant. To her, he looked like he was about to bolt at the slightest provocation.

"Maybe you _shouldn't_." She leaned her back against the counter and watched him. "I'm sorry, I really am. I didn't mean to snap at you."

He shrugged as he jammed his hands in the pockets of his jeans. "It's OK."

She sighed and pulled out a barstool, using it to boost herself up on the counter. "It's not OK." Lifting her wounded leg, she rested it on the stool. "I don't want you to _ever _feel like you're not welcome here."

He nodded slightly, acknowledging her comment. "Do you think it's smart for you to put your foot up there?"

He was trying to change the subject; he usually did when it came to something personal. She'd let him, at least for a few minutes. This was a discussion they needed to have, though.

She looked up at him and seeing his smirk, grinned. "Shut up."

He moved into the kitchen, his eyes trained on her, his mouth quirked up. "I'd hate to have a repeat of the..._incident_."

She bit her bottom lip to keep from smiling again. "I should've never told you how it happened."

His hand landed on her cast. "Would you have lied to me about it? You know I would have found out eventually. I could have gotten it out of Taylor..."

"Lied to you? No." She shook her head and smiled up at him. "I might have embellished a little, though. Maybe made it sound a little less...stupid."

Reese moved to the counter and leaned his back against it, turning his head to grin at her. "It wasn't stupid; it was just an accident. You really should have known better, though."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Thanks. I feel _so_ much better."

His shoulders shook with his silent laughter. "Next time you need a lightbulb changed, Joss...ask someone taller. Or get a ladder." He shook the stool gently. "These aren't exactly made for climbing."

"I know that..._now_...but it was handy at the time. Pretty sure I've learned my lesson." She wiggled the toes poking out of the cast at him.

"Good." He pushed off the counter and turned, pulling the refrigerator door open. He stood in front of it so long, she opened her mouth to call him on it, when he spoke quietly, "You scared me, Joss." Grabbing a beer, he kept his back to her as he twisted the cap off.

She never thought she'd ever hear him utter those words. She also recognized that he was afraid to look at her, afraid to let her see his vulnerability.

"When Finch called and told me you'd been hurt..." he took a long drink from his beer, grabbing another from the fridge. He twisted off the cap and turned towards her, his eyes focused on the bottle in his hand.

"I can imagine what you thought..."

He nodded and glanced at her. "Yeah." The look in his eyes told of something deeper than he was willing to admit.

"I'm sorry."

Shaking his head, he moved in front of her and handed her the beer. "He was able to hack into the clinic's database and when he found out it wasn't work-related...he sounded almost as relieved as I felt."

She nodded and took a sip of the beer. This was the way they talked. Saying things without saying them. It had to stop or she was going to lose her mind.

"I'm glad you stopped by to check on me that night; hadn't seen you since the night of your birthday."

She watched a small smile cross his lips as he looked down, the color staining his cheeks, and knew he was reliving that moment too. For a man who looked like he did, acted like he did, he really wasn't very good at this. If she wasn't the one directly involved, she would have found it funny.

He looked up slowly, his eyes tracking hers, trying to read them. "I'm sorry about that..."

She waved him off. "Work...I know...but I was starting to think you were avoiding me." She cocked her head and raised an eyebrow at him. "You weren't, were you?"

He looked down and away. "Avoiding you? No."

She nodded, understanding and letting him have that little white lie. "Hmmm. Because I was about this close..." she held her thumb and index finger close together and held them up. "...to trying to track you down."

He moved just a little bit closer and rested his hand on the cast again. "Missed me, huh? You could have just called, you know. That phone does work both ways. Hell of a way to get my attention."

He could deflect with humor all he wanted...but she wasn't gonna play that game. "Actually, I _did_ miss you. I'm sorry it took something like this to make you feel like you could come here. After that night...I dunno...I thought..."

She watched his jaw clench and knew she'd gotten under his armor just a touch.

He caught her eyes with his, staring intently at her. "You thought...?"

It was her turn to blush and look down at her hands. She hadn't exactly planned this conversation and the way he was looking at her...

She felt his finger tilting her head up and she realized just how much closer he'd gotten. Maybe he wasn't so bad at this after all. She could feel the heat of him on her legs and smell his barely-there aftershave. Both were doing strange things to her senses.

"You thought...?" He prodded again.

_When had his eyes gotten so dark?_ She couldn't look away from him. "You kissed me."

"I did. You kissed me back."

"I did. Why?"

He grinned. "Why did you kiss me? Only you can answer that."

She bit her lip and held back a curse. "John..."

"I wanted to." He finally said softly and quickly.

"You wanted to?" she questioned. He started to pull away, but she grabbed hold of his hand. They weren't done with this conversation.

He turned his head away from her gaze, his lips pulled into a tight line. "Yes. I wanted to. That night...you...I don't think you realize how much it meant to me."

"So it was just the emotion of the night?" She pulled on his hand and held it between both of hers.

His head shook slowly and she could see he was struggling with the words. "No, not all of it. Yes, it meant the world to me, but you pulled something out of me...something I'd been fighting...feelings that I wasn't sure I was ready for."

Her stomach fluttered with his admission. Now they were getting somewhere. She didn't want him to go alone, though. "Funny, I had the same feeling that night. And when I didn't see you after that...I thought I was imagining it."

His eyes shot to hers, his mouth turning up in an embarrassed smile. "I wasn't exactly sure what to do."

She took a chance and brought his hand to her lips. "Really? You're always so confident. You have a certain...swagger...about you."

Reese took his hand and cupped her cheek. "Swagger..." He chuckled softly and rested his forehead against hers. "Maybe...but not with things that matter."

"And..." she covered his hand with hers, turning her head to plant a soft his to his palm.

He took a step forward and she caught him between her knees. "And...you matter."

There were those damn butterflies again.

"So why were you avoiding me?"

She heard him laugh softly, felt his breath on her face.

"Busted, mister."

He pulled away then and smiled at her, a blush coloring his cheeks again. "I wasn't, not consciously. I needed to figure out what, if anything, I was going to do with what I was feeling."

"Talking to the other person involved is usually a good start."

His hands slipped down her arms, landing on her waist. "I wasn't sure if..._the other person involved_...would even want to talk about it."

She hooked her good leg around his, pulling him closer. "Did this..._person_...give you any indication that she wasn't open to what you were offering?"

"No, she didn't." His hands tightened on her waist.

"Then what's the problem?" She pulled back and watched his face.

His face twisted into a quick grimace. "What I'm offering doesn't come with a lot of stability."

She shook her head. "Did I ask for that? My life isn't exactly stable either, John. I know what you do...how it could end. But I also know that it might not; you might live to be an old man. Are you gonna live your life worrying about what-if's and never take a chance on something that could be really, _really_ good?"

"Are you...?" His eyes were hooded, but she could see the hope in them.

Her own eyes were smiling. "...sure? Yes, damn it, I'm sure. Now for the love of all that's holy..."

She didn't finish the statement as his hands left her hips and cupped her face, his lips coming down hard on hers.

Her toes curled and she broke out in gooseflesh. _Yep, the man definitely knows how to kiss._

Wrapping her arms around his neck, they pulled closer, until she could feel him pressed against her from chest to knees.

He took his time, running his thumbs over her cheeks, turning her to gain better access. The only sounds between them were the occasional sigh or quick gasp for air as his lips teased hers open, his tongue tempting hers to play.

His hands slipped to the back of her neck and his fingers tunneled through her hair. She loved that feeling, loved having someone play with her hair and he was doing it just right.

He wasn't pushing for more; he seemed content just to learn every inch of her mouth with his. His fingers in her hair, over her neck, were soft and non-demanding. She appreciated his self-control because hers was definitely slipping.

She gripped his shirt, pulling him closer, harder, against her. The movement got a chuckle out of him against her mouth...

...and knocked her cast off the barstool. It hit the cabinet below with a hollow thunk.

"Shit!"

At her groan, he pulled back so fast she thought he was going to stumble over himself. "What?" It was then he noticed her wounded ankle no longer on the stool, but hanging over the counter she was sitting on. Her face had lost a little color from the jolt of pain through her ankle.

He grasped her hands quickly, "Damn it, Joss, I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, I'm fine...it was my fault...got a little overenthusiastic for a second there. Forgot where I was." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she knew it was exactly the _wrong_ thing to say to him.

The look that quickly came over him...the predatory gleam...

Maybe it _wasn't_ as wrong as she first thought...

She'd never seen that look on his face before...and she decided that she liked it. She liked it a _lot_. But as quickly as it showed up, it was gone - replaced by a look of concern.

Before she had a chance to argue, he slid her off the counter into his arms and turned towards the living room. He said nothing as he moved with a fluid grace across the floor, careful to keep her from bumping any furniture with her leg.

"Couch or recliner?"

Wrapping her arms over his shoulders, she rested her head on his chest and sighed - Sexy Reese had been replaced by Protective Reese. She decided it wasn't the worst thing in the world...but her body was definitely arguing. "Couch, I guess."

She wasn't prepared when he sat down with her in his lap, holding her close, his nose brushing her behind her ear. Parts of her were more than ready for whatever he offered tonight, the kiss had seen to that, but she had no idea where his mind was right now. She was, however, _very_ aware of how his body felt about the whole thing. It seemed that their bodies had ideas of their own. Too bad their minds were being rational at the moment.

She turned her head up to look at him. His eyes were closed but when he felt her looking at him, his opened them and looked down, a soft smile on his face.

"Do we need to talk about this?" Her voice was soft.

He shook his head slowly. "No. I think we both know where this is going. Tonight, we sleep...just _sleep_...and when we wake up, we'll have breakfast. We can talk, if we need to, in the morning." He pulled his legs up onto the couch and tucked her against his side, his arms still around her.

Reaching up, she grabbed the blanket resting over the back of the couch and draped it over them. She nodded against his chest, knowing he was right, and felt him kiss the top of her head.

"Sleep, Joss. We have all the time in the world."

Fine


End file.
